Apple acquires Perceptio, AI image classification experts

Apple has picked up another small company, this time a startup by the name of Perceptio.

This is according to a report by Bloomberg, in which Apple acknowledged the fact that it had made the acquisition, but refused to be drawn into commenting on any specifics.

Apple spokesman Colin Johnson told Bloomberg: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”

So what does Perceptio actually do? It's an outfit that works on artificial intelligence and image recognition systems, and specifically an AI image classification system that can work on a smartphone without having to pull tons of data down from the cloud (which is never great on a mobile).

In other words, Apple will be gunning for better photo management on the iPhone using AI to make it as streamlined a process as possible.

In theory, anyway – whether anything will actually come of the acquisition, we shall have to see. Sometimes these purchases are pretty speculative, particularly when it comes to companies like Apple which are swimming in cash.

As we reported yesterday, Apple has also bought up VocalIQ, a speech tech AI specialist which will help bolster Siri’s capabilities, and the many devices Cupertino’s voice assistant is now used on. That particular purchase reportedly cost around $50 million to $100 million (£33 million to £66 million).